Workshops for Everyone

Create with Hands-on Opportunities

Puppetry Performance

Learn how to animate giant puppets and other images so that you can perform with us in the final Night of Dread Pageant

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Lantern Making

Make a lantern for the Night of Dread Pageant procession or use it to decorate your home during this most dreadful season.

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Shadow Puppetry

Create shadow images and learn how to animate them for the Pageant installation, The Forest of Shadows.

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Stilt Walking for Youth

The Magpie Club is a free stilt walking, circus arts and performance workshop for youth 12 to 18 years of age.

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Giant Puppetry Performance Workshop

This workshop is suitable for adults and youth 16+.

Are you curious about animating large-scale puppets in an outdoor celebration? Join us for this series of free, fun sessions in puppetry play and discovery. Clay and Paper Theatre master puppeteers will introduce you to:

A range of backpack and rod puppets
Basic techniques of puppetry, which includes the concepts of focus, breath, and weight
Introduce you to other movement games and tools to build confidence and skills with large-scale puppets and images

But that’s not all! You'll have the option to be part of the performance of the final Night of Dread Pageant's 10-minute long theatrical scenario. You’ll work under the guidance of Clay and Paper Theatre master puppeteers and the Artistic Directors to stage the images and puppets that will be part of the 2025 Fear of the Year Puppet scenario and contribute to a collaborative theatrical experience for the whole community.

Giant Puppetry Performance Workshop - October Schedule

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Performers will also participate in a Mandatory Rehearsal of the Fear of the Year Pageant scenario on Thursday, October 23rd with a Rain Date taking place on Friday, October 24th.

Puppeteers for the final Night of Dread Pageant on Saturday, October 25th will be needed onsite at Dufferin Grove Park for 3:30pm.

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Lantern Making Workshop

This workshop is suitable for families, adults and teens. It is recommended that kids be 8 and older. NOTE: Children must have an adult with them to work together to create their lantern.

Join us for in-person FREE lantern making workshops where we explore the theme, “The Deepest Dark.” We'll show you how to build a willow and tissue lantern from scratch. All supplies will be provided, including image stencils if you’d like to use them. And on the final evening of the Festival you can carry your lantern in the 2025 Night of Dread pageant procession or use it to decorate your home during this most dreadful season.

We recommend that you set aside 2 to 3 hours to build your lantern and then decorate it. Our artist facilitators will take you through all of the making steps. Additionally, we will have lantern kits available for purchase ($25) if you would like to work on it at home or buy it as a fun gift.

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Lantern Making Workshop - October Schedule

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Shadow Puppetry Workshop

This workshop is suitable for adults and youth 16+.

For this year’s Night of Dread final Pageant night, help us create a shadow puppetry-based park installation called, The Forest of Shadows, inspired by the theme, Hopes and Fears. You’ll be guided by Clay and Paper Theatre associate artist and shadow puppeteer Kristine White over 6 sessions as you explore several types of shadow puppetry techniques, including:

paper rod puppetry
overhead projection image work
the use of cut paper images
working with organic elements and our own bodies
experimenting with different light sources

With the guidance of Clay and Paper Theatre artists, you’ll imagine and develop the different elements for this shadow installation that Night of Dread audience members will walk around and explore while live music plays to help animate the park space. You'll have the option to be part of the creation of the images and installation and /or also join us as a shadow puppeteer that final Pageant night.

Shadow Puppetry Workshop -October Schedule

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Performers will also participate in a Mandatory Rehearsal of The Forest of Shadows installation on Tuesday, October 21st with a Rain Date taking place on Wednesday, October 22nd.

Shadow puppeteers for the final Night of Dread Pageant on Saturday, October 25th will be needed onsite at Dufferin Grove Park for 3:30pm.

Register Now

Workshop Options

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Please add the name(s) and age(s) (if required) of the interested participant(s). All children must be accompanied by and work with a family member or guardian, specifically for the Lantern Making Workshop.

Interested participants must register below. Please add the name of the participant(s) in the Message section. Please also take note of the age requirements for each Workshop. Thank you.

You can also email us directly at workshops.clayandpaper@gmail.com

Workshops will take place at Dufferin Grove Park near the Field House and/or Clubhouse. Follow up messages from Clay and Paper Theatre will clarify the location of each respective Workshop.